Community Vigil For Missing Hiker, Mt Baldy Closed During Search

IRVINE, CA — A candlelight vigil and was held for missing hiker and Irvine resident Sreenivas "Sree" Mokkapati, 52, lost since Sunday morning. Friends and fellow hiking enthusiasts gathered with signs, pleading for the return of search and rescue Thursday. Mount Baldy was closed to hikers as officials attempt to follow tracks they believe may have been the Irvine man's trail.

Mokkapati was last seen Sunday morning, heading towards the summit of Mt. Baldy in bad weather. Search and rescue teams, all volunteers, have gathered to scour the mountain for signs of the missing hiker, coming from as far as Kern, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Orange Counties. They will be flown by San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department helicopters to resume their search.

Teams have searched the snowy mountain above the 7,000-foot elevation and at times, higher, where the snow is waist-deep in places. Other surfaces are encrusted with ice.

Though Mokkapati is considered an experienced hiker and has hiked this mountain to the summit before, "he was only prepared for a day trip and had limited supplies," an SBSD spokesperson said.

During Wednesday's search, more stranded hikers were found on the mountain's surface, though Mokkapati was not one of them, distressing friends and family.

On Sunday morning, Mokkapati's group started a winter hike from the Village at Bear Flats to the Mt. Baldy Summit on Sunday morning, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. Three turned around, though Mokkapati continued on toward the summit, his counterparts have said. After he did not return to the vehicle the group called in authorities.

Fellow hiker, Justin Williams, told NBC4LA that he wished he would have told Sree to turn back, instead of letting him go on.

"I keep reliving that moment in my mind," Williams told reporters. "He muttered something, I didn't quite hear what he said, and then he just kept walking."

His son, Shravan Mokkapati, said that he was "was heartbroken when his father had still not been found." At the candlelight vigil held in his father's honor, he pleaded with volunteers to keep searching for his father.

Mokkapati was last seen wearing a gray "puffy" jacket and gray pants. Anyone with information about his whereabouts was urged to contact the Fontana Sheriff's Station at 909-453-5392, or 909-677-9436. Callers wishing to remain anonymous are urged to call the We-tip Hotline at 1-800-78-CRIME.